Though Mr. Ferlazzo’s specialty is English Language Learners, many teachers tell us his ideas are useful for learners of all kinds. Let us know how you use this series.

What Does It Mean to be a Citizen?

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From left, Senators John McCain, Charles E. Schumer, Marco Rubio, Richard J. Durbin and Robert Menendez held a press conference in Washington on Jan. 28 announcing a bipartisan immigration plan. Go to related article »Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times

Is passing the citizenship test good enough, or is there more to being a good citizen?

The sequence of ideas and activities below are based on recent news about immigration changes in the United States, but can be adapted for use more broadly. The goal: reading, writing and speaking to enrich students’ definition and understanding of the meaning of citizenship.

Warming Up: Citizenship Definitions and Policy

Begin by asking students to individually free write a definition of “citizen” or “citizenship.” Next, have them work in pairs or small groups to create word webs that bring some of their definitions together, or to create illustrations that in some way depict what citizenship looks like. Have them share these initial ideas with the class as a whole, then save them for later in the lesson.

Next, you might explain that President Obama, and a group of United States senators, have begun to push for a new immigration law this year that could include a path to legalized citizenship for the 11 million illegal immigrants who live in the United States now.

Dictogloss is a summarizing or retelling activity that works like this:

The teacher begins by reading a short text, while students listen, without taking notes.

The teacher then reads the text again, and students write down notes about what they have heard.

Now the teacher reads the piece a third time and students write down additional notes, or fill in what they missed.

Students then pair up to compare notes, and work together to develop an accurate reconstruction of the text — one that is not necessarily the exact wording, but that demonstrates its meaning accurately.

Finally, the teacher reads the text again and students judge how well they did.

Ask students at this point about their reactions to what they have just read and seen. What questions do they have? What parts of the videos or readings were most interesting to them? Why? How does it add to their understanding of the idea of citizenship? What do they hope will happen to the proposed immigration legislation? Why?

The U.S. Citizenship Test and the Call to ‘Active’ Citizenship

Students can then begin to learn about the United States citizenship test that people must pass in order to become legal citizens. Because some students may have experiences with this test, invite them to share what they know, or think they know, about the test before they read.

What kinds of questions do they imagine would be on a citizenship test? Why? After they read, invite them to try the 10-question quiz related to the article.

Next, teachers can explain that both former President Bill Clinton and Mr. Obama, as well as others, have used a term called “active citizenship” to suggest that citizenship means far more than just meeting legal requirements. In fact, it really means being engaged in service to others and working to make communities a better place.

Teachers can read or show the portion of Mr. Obama’s second inaugural address in which he says:

You and I, as citizens, have the power to set this country’s course. You and I, as citizens, have the obligation to shape the debates of our time, not only with the votes we cast, but the voices we lift in defense of our most ancient values and enduring ideas.

Ask students to return to their initial definitions, drawings or word webs to see how much of what they have now learned was actually captured there. What would they add? Why? Have them share their new drafts.

Who Are Some ‘Active Citizens’?

Tell students that they are now going to work in small groups of two to four to learn about people who were, or are, “active citizens.” Each group will learn about a different person or a different group of people and create a visual — whether it’s a poster, infographic or even a set of baseball-card-style “trading cards” — about them. (You can see my directions for creating a poster in this suggestion for a handout on my blog.

You might choose specific people who mesh with your social studies curriculum, or you might have students nominate people they have heard about or are interested in, or you could have them look through The Learning Network’s “Teenagers in The Times” series, which collects stories about young people, many of them activists.

Advanced students could look through recent editions of The New York Times and other papers to find people who interest them, whether they are famous like Sonia Sotomayor or lesser-known citizens like Sarah Kavanagh, a 15-year-old who successfully challenged Pepsi to change an ingredient in Gatorade.

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Sarah Kavanagh, 15, of Hattiesburg, Miss., started an online petition asking PepsiCo to change Gatorade’s formula. Go to related article »Credit James Edward Bates for The New York Times

For example, here are a few Times stories about citizen activists that caught my eye:

To begin, the teacher should choose one example and demonstrate for students what a poster, infographic or trading card might look like based on this person or group of people.

After the visual presentations are completed, students might present them multiple times in a “speed-dating” process, with groups lining up, presenting to the group across from them, then one side of the line moving down to a new group. This can be a less intimidating way for E.L.L.’s to practice their speaking skills and develop more self-confidence.

Students can then brainstorm the answers to these three questions as a class. After the discussion, they might each “claim” one and write answers in paragraphs:

What is a good citizen?

What does a good citizen know?

What does a good citizen do?

In future classes, students might read The Times and continue to mark and save stories about people who they believe are “active citizens” — perhaps for a class bulletin board or blog, or for a school display.

Real-World Projects:

A community project is an ideal culminating activity for this series of lessons. For example, one of my classes organized a gathering of multiple job training providers at our school attended by students and their family members.

Another good idea is to talk about digital citizenship, and what it means to be part of the online world. I recently spoke at a conference on this, with our 10 year old daughter (here’s our slideshare: //www.slideshare.net/WanderingEducators/a-kids-guide-to-getting-digitally-connected). What amazes me most is that these digital natives (those who have grown up in a world where there has always been internet) sometimes have a minimal concept of being part of something, of having a citizenship like this. Great lesson plans – excellent thoughts!